Alternative
by babyfireflies
Summary: Is it wrong to just want him to come back? I miss him. And I'll do whatever I have to, to get him back.' 'But this isn't him, Sue.' 'I can make it him.' 'No you can't. He's dead. You have to accept that.' SueJohnny siblingcentered.
1. A Year Ago Today

Title: Alternative

Author: FantasticStorm

Summary: "Is it wrong to just want him to come back? I miss him. And I'll do whatever I have to, to get him back." "But this isn't him, Sue." "I can make it him." "No you can't. He's dead. You have to accept that."

Disclaimer: Don't own. Don't own. Don't... own...

_Blood. Blood was everywhere. On her hands, her clothes, her face, the ground beneath her.. everywhere._

_"Reed! Reed where are you!?"_

_Sue looked around. Her breathing started to come out in small huffs as panic overwhelmed her. Where was Reed? And why does this scene look so familiar? _

_"Ben? Ben are you here?!" She looked around. "Johnny?" she whispered. No one answered._

_Her fingers shook as they trailed nervously through her hair. She has to calm down. She has to control herself. She closed her eyes, trying to get her thoughts together but most of all trying to remember where she is._

_"...Sue..."_

_Her eyes flew open and she jerked her head to the side. "No..." she whispered, suddenly remembering exactly where she was-_

Sue Richards jumped out of her memory when the wind flew through the window and knocked over a picture frame on her nightstand. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, bringing herself back to reality. She stood up and went to the nightstand, sitting the picture back in its rightful spot.

"How's she doing?"

Sue glanced at the door. Ben's here. She knew he would be. Little earlier than expected, but she knew he'd be here. She grabbed the book she's been reading and headed out of the room.

-----

"How's she doing?"

Reed Richards looked up to the rough voice of Ben Grimm. With a soft sigh, he folded the newspaper he had been reading and set it down in front of him. "She's... suspiciously calm."

"Has she said anything?"

"Just the usual. Good morning. Do you want breakfast? What are you doing today?"

"Did you bring it up?"

"No! No, God no. You know how she reacts to.. that," Reed glanced into the living room, spotting Sue as she sat down on the couch with a book. "Last time I brought this up she blew me out the window."

"I remember," Ben couldn't help but smirk at the memory. "But she's your wife Reed. And she's hurting. I mean, we all are, but especially her. She needs someone. No, she needs you."

"I know that," Reed sighed. "But she's-"

"Am I suppose to pretend I can't hear the two of you?" Sue Richards called from the living room. Her eyes remained on her book. It was only when she was met with silence, that she raised her eyes to look into the kitchen where Reed and Ben were both staring at her. "If you have something to say about me, come in here and lets all discuss it."

Ben glanced at Reed, who seemed to have no intentions of going near her. "Wuss," he mumbled before walking into the living room. "Hey susie, how're you doing today?"

"I'm okay Ben."

"What are you doing today? Anything special?" he asked, eyes practically glued to her.

Sue stuck her bookmark into the crease, then closed the book. "I remember what today is Ben. I wouldn't forget," she said with a sigh. Ben's mouth opened, surely to tell her that he hadn't meant it like that, but Sue cut him off. "I'm going to the cemetery and I'm going to spend the day with my dead brother. I'll pour my heart out, tell him how much I miss him, how much it sucks to live without him, and undoubtedly I'll end up crying half the time. Then Johnny will tell me-oh.. wait... that's right he's dead! I won't be spending the day with my brother. I'll be spending the day with a cold piece of rock with his name on it!" she threw the book down onto the coffee table as she stood up, storming out of the room.

Ben blinked after her. Well, that wasn't how thought things would go. "See, this is why it's best to steer clear of her today," Reed said, his head poking out of the kitchen. He slowly stepped out, glancing down the hallway as a door slammed.

"You're a great husband, anyone ever tell you that?"

"Hey now," Reed put his hand up in defense. "I love Sue more than life. But, when it comes to Johnny, I learned a long time ago that that part of her life is off limits to me. I can't comfort her Ben. It's impossible to help her today. Plus, she still feels guilty.."

"Still?" Ben asked. "You've got to be kidding me? That's ridiculous. It wasn't any more her fault then it was yours or it was mine. The kid wouldn't want her to blame herself anyway."

"Of course not. But 'the kid' isn't here to tell her that. And there in lies the problem. Johnny's dead and Sue's alive and in her world that's not how it's suppose to be," Reed said and sat down on the couch.

"So what are we suppose to do?" Ben carefully sat down beside him, making sure he didn't break the couch.

"I guess we just wait for her to come to us-" the bedroom door opened and Sue came out, putting her coat on. "Hey honey, where you off to?"

"Oh shut up Reed," Sue hissed before slamming the door shut, exiting the apartment.

Ben chuckled. "Hey," Reed frowned. "Wasn't funny..."

------

"I brought flowers.." Sue said, standing in front of her brother's tombstone. "You never liked flowers. I don't know why I bought them..." she admitted quietly. Her eyes tore away from the stone, fighting with all her strength to keep the tears back. "Oh Johnny..." she bit her lip. She brought her eyes back to the tombstone. She hadn't been aware that her legs gave out, until she felt her knees hit the grass.

"I miss you," she said to the stone. That's all that's left of him now. A rock. A cold rock. Seems wrong. No, it is wrong. She placed the flowers in front of her. "Same color as your eyes," she was refering to the flowers. "I told Reed to shut up earlier," she smirked. "You would have loved that..."

It was awhile before she spoke next. And when she did, the tears flowed right along with her words. "I miss you so much. I need you to come back. God, Johnny.. how could you be so stupid? Why couldn't you have just stayed away?"

_Blood. Blood was everywhere._

Her fingers pressed against her eyes, trying to keep the tears and the memories back. "You're such a jerk," she sniffled. "Always making me cry over you."

_"...Sue.." "...No..."_

Sue took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. "Are you with Mom?" she felt like a moron for asking questions, but she felt like she needed to talk. Talking kept the images away. "Bet you were happy to see her, huh?" she grinned. "I don't know if you can hear me up in heaven, but I-"

HELP!

Sue frowned, turning around to see who was screaming. Not that far away she spotted black smoke. Thick black smoke.

HELP! SOMEONE HELP US!

It probably made her a bad person to want to ignore the fire and stay with her brother. No, not her brother but her brother's tombstone.

OH SOMEONE PLEASE HELP US!

Sue sighed and got up, her knees a little dirty from the ground. She jogged out of the cemetery and got a quick look at the fire. Her cell phone beeped. Ben and Reed are on their way.

HELP!

"I'm on my way," Sue mumbled before taking off towards the burning building.


	2. Flame On

Title: Alternative

Author: FantasticStorm

Summary: "Is it wrong to just want him to come back? I miss him. And I'll do whatever I have to, to get him back." "But this isn't him, Sue." "I can make it him." "No you can't. He's dead. You have to accept that."

Disclaimer: Don't own. Don't own. Don't... own...

Chapter Summary : Sue arrives at the burning building in no time, but will she make it out of the burning building alive?

It didn't take long for Sue to reach the apartment building, considering it was only a block or so away from the cemetery. When she did, however, reach the building, she took in a deep breath at the sight. Fire. It always made her uneasy, especially since... well since.

"I think there's someone else in the building!" Sue caught onto the firefighters conversation with his chief. "I don't know for certain, but I think I saw someone. The building isn't steady enough for us to go back in. It's going to collapse if we don't get these flames under control."

Sue didn't need to hear another word. She glanced around, a part of her hoping she would see Ben and Reed somewhere. Nowhere to be seen. Great. With a deep breath, she moved towards the building. It was only once she neared the entrance that she heard the firefighter call out for her to stop. Not likely. If there's someone in here, she's going to get that person out. No one can die on her watch. Especially not today.

The first thing she noticed upon entering was the heat. Sure, of course it would be hot as hell since it's a fire. But, she was never the one inside the building. She was always the one outside of it while Ben, Reed, or Joh-someone.. went inside to help people. So honestly, she had underestimated the feeling of the heat against her skin. Felt like her skin would melt off. With a hand over her mouth, she moved forward. "Hello?!" she called, expecting-no, hoping she'd get an answer. This better not be for nothing. "Hello?!" she called again, now standing at the bottom of the stairs. "Is there anyone he-" she froze.

Someone's here.

-----

"It's about time you guys showed up!"

Ben and Reed frowned as they jogged up to the building, each in their uniform. Ben eyed the firefighter, a nasty comment on the tip of his tongue. But he bit it back. Now, not the time. "We came as soon as we could," Reed explained, as if he needed to explain himself.

"Your girl went in.." the firefighter said, his gum swishing loudly in his mouth. Oh yeah, Ben had something to say about that too.

"Our girl? We don't-" Sue. The panic set in and made his stomach twist. "Why did you let her in there?!"

"Like we could stop her!"

He believed that. Sue was a woman of her own. No one told her what to do. Ever. "I need to get in there," but as Reed took a step forward, Ben pulled him back. "Ben! I have to go in there and get Sue!"

"The building isn't steady Reed! I can tell. We have to think of another way to get to her," and since when is he the word of reason? Sure he wanted Sue out of there as soon as possible. Hell he considered going in himself. But the last thing they need is him or Reed getting their asses killed. Then they would be no use to Sue. Again, when did he become the man of reason?

"Ben if something happens.." Reed wasn't sure if it was the day or what, but Johnny died a year ago today, and now his sister who has yet to accept his death is in a burning building. If it collapses, will Sue really feel up to keeping herself safe? Or will she see Johnny and be careless? Reed isn't sure and he doesn't want to find out. He wants her safe. He wants her out of that damn building! But, Ben's right. They have to find another way to help.

-----

"Keep talking to me! Let me hear your voice!" Sue cried out. She eyed the steps. Does she really have a choice? She started walking up them, slow and careful. Each board creaked against the bottom of her foot and the railing? No better. But she was doing well and she was almost at the top. And that's when the floor gave out beneath her.

She just managed to get onto the next level, only her leg falling through. She pulled herself up the rest of the way, her face scrunched in pain. She sat there for a second, completely forgetting why she was doing this. Her leg had a gash on it, but overall, she was okay. Then she heard the voice again and her head jerked in the direction it came from. "I'm coming!"

She limped the rest of the way down the hall. The voice was getting closer and it wasn't long before she was standing outside of a room, the person inside. She thanked God for letting him get trapped on the second floor. Any higher up and she might not have been able to get him. "I'm right here! I'm coming in! Hang on, okay!" she said through the door. "Okay Sue focus," she whispered to herself. She gathered enough energy to blow down the door with her force field. The black smoke rushed out and hit her right on the face. She coughed and ran her hands to get rid of it.

"Help me, please," came a weak voice. She managed to crawl inside. The voice belonged to a young man. He was trapped underneath a piece of ceiling. "Please.." he begged before coughing overtook him.

"I'm right here," Sue said softly, crawling over to him. She eyed the boards on top of him. "Just.. just hang on, okay? I'm going to get us out of here. Just bare with me," she said as she finally stood up. She started to lift the heavy boards off of him. It took all her energy to get just a few off him and by the time he was free, she felt like she was going to pass out. Fires were tiresome. They suck the energy out of you. This realization makes her wonder how Johnny could have been on fire and still be so damn hyper active sometimes. Didn't make sense.

"Take my hand," Sue reached out. The young man eyed her. He wasn't that trusting. Sue didn't see the point in being untrustworthy right now, especially since she's saving his butt. "I said take my hand!" and that did it, because he reached out and grabbed her hand, letting her help him up.

"My leg.. I can't.. I can't walk," he coughed. His eyelids were getting heavy and he really wanted to catch a few z's. She came to save him though, and he owed her enough to let her get out of here alive.

"Well you're going to have to. Just focus and remember, when you get out of here it's all over. You'll get help and everything will be okay. You have to push yourself because I'm not leaving you behind and I'm not dying.. not today," Sue told him, wrapping his arm over her shoulders to help him get out.

"You're an optomist.."

"Funny, you're the first person to ever tell me that," Sue said as she led him towards the stairs. The two stairs were gone and that posed as a big problem for them. "We're going to have to-" she stopped when the ground beneath them rumbled. The building was gonna blow.

-----

"It's gonna blow!" A firefighter started to push people back. "Get away she's gonna blow!" They all backed away.

"No.." Reed's eyes widened. "No," he shook his head. Just as he took a step forward, the building blew up. "NO!"

Ben's eyes widened, watching as the building nearly collapsed. It was holding up by a thread probably. Sue's still inside. He hasn't so much as seen her since they arrived. God, he hopes she's okay._ Watch over her, kid._

-----

If her powers were human, she'd kiss them right now. As the fire rushed towards them, she gain ed enough energy to push up her force field. The fire hit it and she had to take a step back from the hit. She has to be strong. Her life depends on it. His life depends on it. The flames were only hitting them for a few seconds, but in Sue's mind it was for hours. By the time the flames flew back, she was completely done. Her energy was gone and at this point she didn't care if she was lit on fire as long as she got to lay down while she did so.

"Are you okay?"

She glanced at the young man beside her. "Yeah. You?"

"Thank you."

"Not time for thank you yet," she said, pushing herself up to stand. She took his hand and helped him up. They got around the broken stairs, barely, but successfully. Finally, their lungs met fresh, clean, pure, beautiful air.

"Sue!" She didn't have time to think before Reed's arms were holding her tight. After a moment he pulled back, remembering that she might be hurt and he shouldn't squeeze her. "Are you okay? Are you hurt? You're okay?" his mind was frantic as his eyes ran over her body to check for any possibly life threatening wounds.

"I'm okay," Sue said just as Ben joined them, right along with the medics.

"Sit here please," one medic led her to a bench. Sue gladly sat down.

"Is she okay?" Reed was a second away from pacing. He was so nervous.

"Her leg will need to be stitched, but otherwise she'll be perfectly fine. We'll take you to the hospital. I'd like you to take some oxygen to clean your lungs," a medic told her.

"Hey lady," the gum loving firefighter came over to her. "Ya know you're really lucky. That building would have killed you. Ya lucky, extremely lucky."

Sue had to grin at that. "It has nothing to do with luck," she whispered. No, it has to do with little brothers who even after death are still watching over their big sister.

"Okay Miss, can you walk to the ambulance?" A medic asked. Sue nodded and stood up. She pat the firefighter's shoulder as she passed. She didn't check for Reed and Ben because she already knew they were following her.

Sue let them help her into the ambulance, then quickly laid down on the stretcher. She just needed to lay down. Her eyes closed and her mind went through the events of the day so far. This fire took away from her time with Johnny, but, she was glad she got to save someone. If she hadn't gotten there in time that man could have died and then another family would grieve this day just like she does.

"Sue.." Reed took her hand.

She didn't even know he had come along. Her eyes opened. "Hey Reed, I thought you were gonna ride with Ben?"

"I needed to stay with you," Reed's fingers ran over her knuckles while his eyes stayed glued to them in sort of a trance. "Me and Johnny were never really best friends. We got along, I guess. But when he died..." Reed trailed off, now squeezing Sue's hand. "I miss him too. I do, I.. I miss him. Even though it's been a long time. 365 days to be exact," he always had to be exact. "I still find myself looking around thinking 'hey, where's Johnny?' and then I remember and.." he sighed. "It hurt to lost him, but I can't imagine losing you," he said softly, his thumb wiping away a tear that ran down Sue's cheek. "So I'm going to ask you this.. please, _please _don't do anything stupid. Take care of yourself because I need you. Ben, he needs you too. We need you."

"I wasn't going to do anything stupid Reed," Sue whispered. "I... I miss Johnny and I wish nothing more than to see him again, even if only for a minute, but I'm not going to get myself killed to do so. I'll wait. It will be painful and torturous but I'll wait until my time comes to see him. Trust me, I need you too. I need you right now Reed, more than ever."

"I'm here," and he felt exhausted. He wasn't very good at sharing his feelings and he knew from experience the Storm family was even worse. Unless it came to anger, Johnny and Sue loved to express themselves then. He kissed her hand and grinned at her. It felt good though. Like some weight had been taken off his shoulders. Maybe Dr. Phil was right, you should share your feelings more often. Not that he watches Dr. Phil or anything. No. Certainly not.

"We're here," the medics announced from the front of the ambulance. Reed helped Sue sit up and rubbed her shoulders while the medics opened the back doors. "We have a wheelchair waiting for you," said one medic.

Sue got out, with some help, and sure enough there was a nurse with a wheelchair. "Thank you," Sue said with a polite smile. She carefully sat down and looked at Reed. "Wait for me?"

"You can count on it," they both shared a grin before Sue was wheeled away. Reed sighed and made his way to the all to familiar waiting room. Most of his time spent here was back when Johnny was alive. Odd that the human torch can save humanity but can't stop himself from flying his bike off a ramp and accidentally landing on the ground, without the bike. Then Sue would rush them all to the hospital, going on and on about how she was going to beat Johnny when she gets to him. How could he be so careless and stupid, she usually asked. And then she would walk into the hospital room, ready to raise hell and would instead hug her brother and call him an idiot.

He misses those days. He would give anything to have those days back. The Fantastic Four was much better than the Triumphant Three as the media now calls them. There's nothing he can do about it. All the science and math in the world won't bring Johnny back and the idea leaves him very depressed. Now all he can do is sit back, wait for Sue, and ponder how he can make their lives better.


	3. How Dare They

Title: Alternative

Author: FantasticStorm

Summary: "Is it wrong to just want him to come back? I miss him. And I'll do whatever I have to, to get him back." "But this isn't him, Sue." "I can make it him." "No you can't. He's dead. You have to accept that."

Disclaimer: Don't own. Don't own. Don't... own...

Chapter Summary: Ben goes home while Sue catches the nighttime news.

----

"Ben?" Alicia asked from her spot on the couch. She heard the key clink against the table beside the door.

"Yeah it's me," came the rough voice she has grown to love. She heard the tension and sadness in his voice and immediately frowned. She turned off the audio book she was listening to and turned towards the door. "How're you feeling?" Ben asked her, seeing her blind eye on him.

"Shouldn't I be asking you that?" Alicia asked, slowly pushing herself up. "You sound sad," she said softly.

"There was a fire today and Sue ran in without us. The building exploded and... and it got pretty scary there for a few minutes."

"Oh my God is she okay?" Alicia's hand went over her mouth.

"Yeah, yeah she's fine," Ben's rocky hand was gentle on her shoulder. "She had to get stitches I think but she's home now. She's alright."

"Thank God," Alicia said with a sigh of relief. She felt Ben's hand take hers and only a few moments later she was sitting on the couch, his arm around her. She grinned as the blanket now covered her too.

"It's cold today," Ben said and Alicia didn't have the heart to tell him it wasn't cold. It was just the day. She had forgotten at first and had been puzzled when Ben left so early this morning. Then it hit her like a ton of bricks.

_"Ben? Ben is that you?"_

_"It's me."_

_"Are you okay?" she heard a sniffle and a deep sigh moments later._

_"No."_

They stayed together, snuggling up under the blanket. "I love you Alicia, I-I just want you to know that. Just in case anything ever happens to me."

"Which nothing will."

_"What's wrong? Ben? Talk to me Ben."_

_"He died."_

_"What?! Who?"_

_"Susie's a mess. You need to come down to the hospital with me."_

_"Oh no. Reed?"_

_"No."_

"You never know. I won't live forever Alicia and who knows if my time is shorter than I wish."

"Nothing will happen to you Ben. Please stop saying that," but she couldn't really argue with him because like he said, she never knows.

_"Then who?" To anyone who knows Susan storm, there next suspect would have been Johnny, assuming he wasn't their first. But not to Alicia. She couldn't even consider the idea._

_"J-Johnny. Johnny's gone. H-He died."_

_"No." Wasn't possible. Johnathan Storm in all his arrogance and annoyance, is invincible. It just, was not possible._

_"Alicia he's gone. Johnny's gone. I can't.. I mean... he-he's gone. Johnny's dead."_

Alicia blinked away from her memories when Ben sighed, his big chest rocking her slightly. "I guess it's just a hard day. For Sue mostly but..." he didn't say anything after that. Alicia knew better to ask what he was going to say. She already knew anyway. Ben cared deeply about Johnny. One might not think so upon hearing the two of them argue but Ben liked the kid. He would tell her how much he had bothered him that day and how he was such an ass. But she could hear in his voice that he didn't mean in and after Johnny died, Ben admitted that he would give anything to be called wideload again. So Alicia called him a wide load and Ben laughed at her, admitting it just wasn't the same.

"How is Sue holding up today?"

"As expected I guess. She misses her brother. I don't expect her to be doing okay today."

Alicia's eyes closed with a small nod. She was tired. She slowly started to drift away when the memories caught back up with her.

_She knew she was in the hospital when she smelt the cleaning supplies. Hospitals were always so clean. They had to be. Ben was leading her to Sue so she could sit with her friend. She was nervous. What was she suppose to say? Nothing would comfort her. Should she say nothing? Or would that be taken as acting cold towards her? Alicia didn't know._

_The sound is forever etched into her mind. The blood curling scream. Alicia didn't need to ask. They were with Sue. She could hear Reed's soft voice trying to calm his wife but it was no use. The sobs and cries bounced off the walls and actually made Alicia's ears ache. The utter heartbreak and despair in Sue's voice almost made her want to run away._

_Even though she could hear Sue's cries, Alicia thanked God for the first time in her life that she was blind, because she isn't sure she could handle seeing Susan Storm completely break down._

-----

"Ready to go home?" Reed greeted Sue with a small smile. He held his hand out for her to take.

Sue grinned as she placed her hand in his, immediately feeling a sense of comfort and security upon touching him. "Actually, I wanted to check up on that guy. I uh, wanted to see if he was okay."

Reed's smile fell a little. He really just wanted to take Sue home, lock the doors, and keep her safe from all harm. However, who was he to tell her she couldn't do something? Or, more so, was he really brave enough to tell her no and risk his own butt ending up in the hospital. "Yeah, okay. Want me to go with you?" He hopes he didn't sound too hopeful.

"You know what? How about you get the car ready and I'll just peek in and see him? Sounds good to me."

Like he had a choice. "Me too," he put up a fake grin and kissed her cheek before leaving to retrieve the car.

It didn't take long for Sue to find his room. A quick trip to the nurse's desk and she was on her way. Matthew Winters. A young man, age 24, no family. Sounds delightful. She knocked on the door before stepping inside. "Hey, how are you feeling?" she asked. He was lying on a hospital bed with his arm wrapped up as well as a few bandages on his head. Overall, he looked okay. Alive anyway.

"Hi," he smiled immediately. "I'm good. I'm great. How are you? I heard you hurt your leg pretty bad. I'm sorry."

"Yeah well, when you grow up with a little brother who thinks it's fun to make things explode, you get pretty used to being injured," she smirked at the memories that flashed through her mind. Johnny was a destructive child.

Matt chuckled. "Yeah, I don't know much about explosions. Least, I didn't until today," his eyes finally met hers. "Thank you. For saving me. Not that it was worth it.." he trailed off.

"Of course you were worth it.." Sue frowned. "Why would you say something like that?"

"I didn't live there," he said. He sighed when she continued giving him the confused look. "I'm poor. Homeless really. I was just.. some couple moved out and I broke in. I'm not worth much. I'm especially not worth you risking your life Invisible Woman."

Sue sighed. The name. Eh. "Just because you're homeless doesn't mean you're worthless. It just means you have a rough life. Maybe this fire will be a wakeup call. Maybe..." she shrugged. "Maybe you'll get yourself together now."

Matt couldn't help but laugh. "There's no hope for me. I never finished school. Don't have a job. Don't have a place to live."

"What about family?"

"They're all gone. Died years ago," he admitted. He watched as Sue's head lowered, looking at the ground. "I didn't mean to bring that up. I know what today is. Everyone does. I just uh-"

"It's okay," Sue raised her hand to stop him. "I have to go. My husband's waiting for me. Listen it was uh, nice seeing you alive. Call me if you ever need anything. It's not that hard to contact me. Just follow the cameras and reporters," she said softly. "Bye Matt," she said before leaving with a limp.

-----

"Feeling any better?" Reed handed Sue the popcorn. They were going to watch a movie and cuddle up for the night. Be at peace for once.

"Good as ever," Sue said, though her tone said differently. She stuck some popcorn in her mouth and watched Reed go over to the TV.

"The remote has been missing for a few days. I have a sneaking suspicion that Ben broke it. He probably hid it to keep out of trouble," Reed smirked. "Oh! Drinks! I'll be right back," he moved to the kitchen.

Sue rolled her eyes but grinned none the less, her attention now focused on the TV.

-On the six o'clock news! Tonight's stories include the three legged dog who saved a kitten, the fire that took the old Manchester building, and the one year anniversary of the Human Torch.-

Sue immediately frowned. The two news achors came on and they were talking, but she wasn't really listening. Then it happened, the images.

-Today marks the one year anniversary of the horrible death of Johnny Storm, or as we call him the Human Torch from the Fantastic Four. It was a year ago that the human torch was brutally murdered at the hands of Dr. Doom.-

That's when the images came. They first showed a picture of the four of them, Johnny smirking while the others smiled. It was what came after that scared her. It was a scene from a helicopter. It was the building and it showed Johnny being wheeled out of it on a stretcher. Sue saw herself practically clinging to his side. The next image was the crime scene.

_Blood. Blood was everywhere. On her hands, her clothes, her face, the ground beneath her.. everywhere._

"REED!" Sue screamed at the top of her lungs. "REED!" She felt like she was glued to her seat, unable to stop her eyes from watching the images. Johnny's funeral. His cold wooden coffin being carried out of the church. Sue followed, her face completely soaked. Reed, Ben, and Alicia were at her side.

"What?!" Reed rushed into the room, suddenly panicked by the screaming.

"Nonononono Reed make it stop! Make it stop Reed!"

Reed's eyes snapped to the TV in time to see footage of Johnny's coffin being lowered to the ground. He practically flew at the TV, turning it off as quick as possible. His eyes then snapped to his wife. "Oh, honey," he whispered. She was panting, a tear rolling down her cheek. He went to go hug her but was shoved out of the way as she stood up.

"How DARE they! How dare they show that! That was private!" She was fuming. "I'm gonna take their asses to court," she shook from anger. "How dare those assholes show my brother's funeral?! How could they be so cruel!" She was gone, only her clothes now visible. "How can they do that?! How can they be so heartless?! How can they... how can they..." she trailed off, slowly coming back to view. She swallowed, her puffy red eyes meeting Reed's.

"Sue-"

He was too late. She was already taking off for the bathroom. It was only a second or so later that he heard the door slam and the knob lock. Reed looked back at the TV as if it could help him. It wasn't long before he heard the crying. Nothing unusual. Since Johnny died, Sue cries more than she doesn't. But it's rare that she lets anyone see or hear. She still had her Storm pride. But sometimes when Reed wakes up late at night, he sees the bathroom light on and can hear the crying.

Reed sighed and sat down on the couch. He hung his head, squeezing his eyes shut as Sue's cries got quieter. He slowly raised his head, looking at the ceiling. "We need you here Johnny," he sighed again. Not much talking to the ceiling would do for him.

Instead he got up and moved towards the bathroom. Time for another night of no sleep and tears.


	4. I've Been Thinking

Hey! -waves- Thanks for the reviews guys :) They really motivate me to write more because I know people are reading. Can't keep people waiting, ya know. Anyway, here's the next chapter. I'm planning on writing more in each chapter but we'll see how that goes. I don't want a 100 chapter story, as I'm sure you don't either.

Oh, and just to clear it up - _All italics are flashbacks to the day Johnny died. They're __all__ from that day, no other time._ Oh and I know some of you are wondering what happened to Johnny, so I wanted to leave this decision up to you. Would you rather a-have Sue or someone flash back to the entire day without interruption or b-I'll write a prequel when this fic is over and it'll be just that day, nothing else.

Let me know what you think ;)

Chapter Sumamry: Sue's been thinking... and Reed doesn't like it.

-----

Reed was never good with emotions. He never liked them. They made him feel uncomfortable. Maybe it's because emotions had nothing to do with Math and Science. You can't calculate people's feelings. This bothered him.

He's an emotional man, sure. He cried when his parents died, he felt the pain the first time he lost Sue, and he felt the complete and utter happiness during his wedding. He can feel. He likes to feel. He just.. well he doesn't like the whole psychology thing. That's probably why he can't help Sue. He sits there and hugs her. He whispers soothing words in her ear, hoping to comfort her. But it never works and he really hates emotions. They mess everything up.

Then again, so do evil men by the name Doom. He hates emotions and he hates Doom.

_"Sue.. it's Johnny... Doom has him."_

The man with nine lives. He can still feel the fear creep up his spine at the thought of him. He's gone for good, but, they thought that last time too. Doom has always been a thorn in his side. Granted, he became more than that after the 'accident'. Trying to destroy things, taking Sue, killing Johnny... Reed has more than enough reasons to hate him.

_"Hello darling, how nice of you to come and see me.."_

_"Where is he Doom?"_

_"Who?"_

_"You know who!"_

_"No I really don't. Though now that I think about it, where's your little brother Sue?"_

_"I'll kill you."_

_"Really? Well I suppose poor little Johnny boy will never be found then, hm?"_

Reed sighed as he slipped the pancakes onto the plate. He wanted this morning to be perfect. It was a rough night. Sue had cried all the while throwing threats out at the news station. Then she made herself sick and well, it went downhill from there. He ended up carrying her to bed. Seeing her like that unnerved him and he wasn't able to sleep. So he spent the night reading research books about the stages and effects of grief. Something was wrong here. He knows Sue will never get over her brother's death. He doesn't expect her to. But, to still be this upset... was that normal? He wasn't sure.

"You made breakfast.." Sue said as she entered the kitchen, her slippered feet dragging along the hard wood floor.

Reed smiled once he saw her. "Yes I did. For us," he pressed a small kiss to her cheek. "Figured that after such a long night we could use a good breakfast to start the day off right."

Sue didn't smile back. "Sure. That's nice Reed," she said, though her voice lacked the enthusiastic tone she had planned on. She went over to the table and sat down. She took a moment to eye the food. Reed can cook.. toast. That's about it. "Looks good," she put up a small grin this time. Reed poured orange juice into her glass. "Thanks," she said, taking a sip.

Reed sat down. They started to eat in silence. The silence was comforting to Reed, but annoyed the hell out of Sue. "How's it taste?"

"Oh it's uh, it's delicious," Sue said with a smile before bringing the fork to her mouth. It did taste alright. She had to give him credit for that much. "I was thinking.." she said, licking the syrup off her lips. "Since Ben moved out and... well it's been kind of quiet around here lately."

"That it has. Peaceful if I do say so myself."

"Uh, yeah sure. But anyway, I was thinking.. maybe we could invite someone to stay with us.." Reed almost choked on his pancakes. "Oh, are you alright?" Sue asked, worried eyes watching her husband.

He held his hand up with a small nod. After a few more coughs, he let his eyes meet Sue's. "You want to rent out a room?"

"Well. Not exactly," Sue poked at her food. "I meant letting someone stay with us."

"Are you forgetting who we are?"

"Are you forgetting what we do?"

"You lost me."

Sue sighed, dropping her fork to her plate. "I want Matt to stay with us," she crossed her arms, as if she was preparing herself for the fight.

"Matt? I don't even know a Matt!"

"He's the guy I pulled out of the building the other day. He's only 24. He's homeless. His family's dead Reed. Dead."

"Okay, can I just ask where the hell this is coming from?"

"I don't know.. it crossed my mind is all. I think it's a good idea," she said, eyes staring into his. "Look, I dunno, his story got to me okay? I mean, the kid is totally alone in the world. I think it would be good for him to have some place to call home."

Reed hesitated before asking, "And is that all?"

Sue pushed her lips together for a moment. "Well, it would be good for me too. He'll understand me. I mean, no offense to you and Ben but.. you guys really suck in the comfort department."

Reed frowned. "Yeah, none taken."

"Oh stop, you know I'm not insulting you. This guy needs a home and I need someone who I can talk to."

"When are you going to understand that you can talk to me Sue? You can talk to me. Any time and any place. I am here. Always," Reed explained. It was quiet after that and he hung his head. "If he stays here we need ground rules."

"Of course."

"He has to stay away from my lab."

"Got it."

"And he can't be involved with our work."

"Of course not."

"He has to help out around here. And he has to try and get a job. And.. and-"

"I got it Reed," Sue smiled as she stood up. "Thank you," she wrapped her arms around Reed. She pressed a small kiss to his lips. "I mean it, thank you," she said softly. "This will help me, I promise. Everything will go back to normal."

"As long as you're okay," Reed rubbed her back, leaning in for another kiss.

Sue turned away from the kiss. "I'll be back in a few hours!" she quickly exit the kitchen in excitement.

"I'll... be here..." Reed whispered to himself. He looked at the breakfast he spent hours perfecting. So much for a lovely breakfast, just them.

_"Nothing will ever be the same Reed. I'll never be the same."_

Yeah. Didn't he know it.

-----

"So I'm good to go?" Matthew Winters asked the nurse at the desk. The short, thin nurse nodded, not bothering to look up at him. "Okay, thank you," Matt gave her a small smile even though he knew he wouldn't get one in return. He walked out the nearest exit. Ah, fresh air. He had been so excited to leave that horrible place.. and now he can't remember why. He has absolutely nowhere to go. Nothing to do. No one to see. Maybe the shelter down the street has an extra bed for him.

"Hey! Matt!"

Matt turned around and was more than surprised to see the ever famous Invisible Woman, Mrs. Fantastic, jogging over to him. He grinned once she caught up to him. "Mrs. Richards, how are you?" he asked. "How's the leg?" he was genuinely concerned.

"Oh, yeah it's fine. Doesn't even bother me anymore," Sue smiled. "But how are you?"

"Oh you know.." he shrugged. He didn't really have anything else to add to that. "I'm okay, as always."

"I need to talk to you," Sue said. The two of them now started to walk around the hospital building towards the parking lot. "What you said yesterday.. I can't stop thinking about it."

"Oh," Matt stopped walking. "Oh I didn't mean for it to be like that. I wasn't looking for pity or anything.. I was just.."

"Hey, relax," Sue placed her hand on his shoulder. "I know you weren't. Your story touched me is all. I-I.. God this is hard to say but.. I understand.."

"No way, you're poor too?"

Sue laughed, mostly because he was serious. "No, no that's not what I meant. I mean that I understand how you feel. I still have my husband and I still have Ben but.. my family's dead too. Look, how would you like to go get something to eat?"

"I couldn't do that."

"Why not?"

"It's not right for the lady to pay for the guy, should be the other way around. Especially if the lady saved your bum butt from being crisped."

"Well, consider your presence a way of paying me back."

"You're sure?"

"I'm positive. I have a lot I want to talk to you about," she linked her arm with his and led him down the street.

-----

"Hi Alicia, is Ben around?" Reed asked once Alicia opened the door. he was here for multiple reasons. One, he has to vent his frustrations. Two, he needs another opinion on the matter. And three, he's bored.

"Sure is," Alicia moved aside to let Reed in. "Ben! Ben, Reed's here!" she called, closing the door behind Reed.

The room shook a little before Ben appeared. "Reed! Hey what's up? Everyone okay?"

"Yeah, everyone's fine. Sue's crazy but other than that, we're great," Reed huffed as he plopped down onto the couch, looking lost. Ben sighed and Alicia took that as her cue to leave.

"What happened?" Ben carefully sat down on the couch beside Reed.

"That guy she saved, she wants us to take him in."

"She has gone crazy."

"I agreed."

"It's spreading."

"Ben," Reed glanced at him. "She said it will help her get back to normal. She'll be the way she was before Johnny died."

"You don't believe her do you?" and when he got no answer, Ben sighed. "She's not going to get over this Reed. Johnny's death... none of us will get over that. Sure the kid was a pain in the ass but.. he never deserved to die like that. Between you and me only, I miss the kid too. I miss his little arrogant remarks. I miss the bickering, hell, I miss him and Sue bickering. He was always bickering," Ben smirked. "Point is.. death is the only thing in this world that can take a strong person and make that person completely and utterly vulnerable. The person Sue was... she may never be that way again. We don't know."

"I need to know."

"But you can't know Reed. Sue's... she's Sue. Who knows what she'll do next.."

"True," Reed sighed. "I just.. I wish this was Math or something. I could get it then. Right now.. I can't," Reed said. Moment passed before either spoke. "So you've been watching a lot of Oprah I see?"

"Shut up."

"I prefer Dr. Phil myself."

Ben smirked. Reed chuckled, letting Ben turn on the TV and flip to Oprah. Was a touching show. Guess he has to sit back and watch it.. and let his mind wander from Sue for just a few minutes.

-----

Just a note, Matt will be involved in this story BUT he is not going to end up with Sue or become an original character. He's simply a prop I need to use in my story. I have no intentions of making him a part of the fantastic group or any of that. Once his story is done, he's gone. So all you Reed/Sue fans out there who are reading this, rest assured, there will be plenty of Reed and Sue love. 


	5. It's Just A Phase

Hey everyone I finally got around to updaing. Hope you guys enjoy it.

Chapter Summary: Two weeks later, Matt has a job and Johnny returns?

-----

Two weeks seemed to come and go in a flash. Matt had agreed to move in, under Reed's terms of course. He was currently staying in the guest bedroom. Reed was still a little put off by the whole situation. It's not that he didn't feel sympathy for the guy, because he did, it's just that he doesn't know or trust the guy. It was, well, weird. Weird to have a man you don't know sleep only a few doors down. But that was probably the least weird thing to happen in the past two weeks. No, Sue definitely nabbed the weirdest thing ever award. She was spending a lot of time with him, which was fine, but starting to get way excessive. He didn't complain though because he had to admit that since Matt moved in Sue has been getting better. She didn't cry anymore, she smiled more often, and she was acting like her former self. Her 'before Johnny's death' self and with that there was no room for complaints.

"Good morning Reed," Sue said, a bright smile on her face as she walked into the kitchen. She was her usual jogging wardrobe which left Reed a little puzzled. Sue hasn't gone jogging in years. Before they were even married. "I went out for a jog," her breath was still a little hitcched from exertion as she spoke. "It was amazing. It was like breathing again after suffocating for so long, ya know?"

"I was never much of a jogger. The kids at school used to call me chicken legs-" he was interrupted in the middle of his sentence by a ferocious laugh. He jumped from the sudden sound. Sue. She was holding her stomach and laughing. Okay so despite the fact that those kids used to torture him, at least it made Sue smile. A smile of his own appeared as he watched her, newspaper long forgotten. "I thought you would like that."

"Oh, I'm sorry Honey, but that is funny," she said, finishing her fit of giggles. "Johnny would have loved that story," she grabbed a piece of toast from Reed's plate.

Sirens went off in his head. CAUTION, CAUTION, DO NOT APPROACH! He waited for it. He waited for the reaction that always came when Johnny's name was brought up. The slow sinking of her beautiful smile, the welled up tears in her eyes she tres to hold back, and the pained expression crossing over her beautiful features. He waited. But, it never came. For the first time in a year, it never came. Reed's eyes followed her, waiting for something, anything. Maybe she had a new reaction. Maybe she would start throwing things. Oh he hates when she throws things. She always throws his things, never her own. He waited, and waited, and waited. Nothing happened. She simply sat down with a grin and started to eat some of his breakfast.

In complete shock, he decided to test this new attitude out. "Yeah he did actually. I made the mistake of telling Johnny once and afterwards he would always call me chicken legs... and then laugh. He was such a pleasure," his own grin began to fall but, but Sue's didn't. Reed had to frown at his wife, completely unsettled by her expression. He wasn't sure if he should be happy that she was able to talk about Johnny or be upset that she seems to completely not care anymore.

Her eyes did light up though as they stared past Reed. Reed turned slightly in his chair to see what she was lookinh at. "Matt!" Sue beckoned him forward. "Come sit, come eat. You need a good nutrition you know," she pat the seat beside her. Matt grinned and walked in, doing as told. Sue took Reed's plate from him and seet it in front of Matt.

"I just wanted to share some news. I uh, I uh.. I got a job," Matt grinned, proud of himself. Sue gasped, excitement radiating from her eyes. Matt blushed, ducking his head to hide his bashful grin.

"That's amazing Matty! I'm so proud of you!" she gave him a quick, small hug. Reed watched the two of them in interest. Something was off. Totally off. "Tell you what, you and I are gonna go out and have a good time. Celebrate this amazing occasion, yes?" Matt nodded. "Great. I'm gonna go get changed," Sue bounced away like an excited child. Reed frowned. His eyes went to Matt's, who shrugged before eating more of his breakfast. Reed reached over and took his plate back, quickly eating the rest of it and smirking at Matt. Take that.

-----

"Something is wrong," Reed walked into Ben's new apartment he rented out with Alicia. Ben blinked and slowly shut the door, mumbling a 'come on in' before he did so. "You should have seen her Ben. You should have seen Sue this morning. She was... like she used to be.."

"Ah," Ben's gruff voice filled Reed's thoughts. Ben nodded in agreement. "Yes that does sound like a problem. We should put an end to this madness right now," Ben rolled his eyes as he finished. Reed is Ben's best friend in the whole world but sometimes.... he wants to clobber the guy. For a genius, it isn't often that Reed Richards actually makes sense.

"No, I mean, okay, yeah this is great. My Susie is back. Only, she's... she's weird. You should see the way she acted this morning. She went jogging. Oh! And she was all over Matt, big time."

"I see what this is about," Ben said as he took a seat on his sturdy couch, waiting for Reed to sit beside him. "You're jealous which is perfectly normal. She's been paying more attention to the bum than you, right?"

"We shouldn't call him a bum, Ben, but yes. I mean, no about the jealousy thing and yes about the fact that she's paying more attention to him," Reed sighed, leaning back into the couch. "I love her, Ben. More than words could ever say. I just, I just can't not worry about her. I can't ignore this feeling in my gut that something is wrong here."

"You don't have a choice buddy," Ben chimed in. "If you love Sue then you'll let her sort through her emotions. Sue and Johnny were close. They were best friends and Sue lost him. She blames herself for what happened. Sue is a strong woman Reed but she isn't made of brick," he smirked at himself. "She can fall apart just like anyone else and she has. Sue will come around. You just have to give her the time and patience that she needs you to give her."

Reed nodded. "You're absolutely right," he sighed softly. It was quiet for a moment, as each of their brains were wracked with thoughts. "How did you get so good at the relationship advice thing? You can't possibly watch that much Oprah."

Ben's eyes narrowed playfully. "I have my secrets too Reed. I have my secrets too." Reed suddenly looked like he was going to be sick. Ben frowned. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I ate my breakfast too quick. Heartburn." They both nodded.

-----

They had been gone all day. Matt and Sue that is. He figured she was still celebrating the new job with him. Didn't matter because tonight was going to be amazing. He had a beautiful dinner planned for his lovely wife and himself. Who says romance dies once you're married? Not him. Reed finished lighting the candles, grinning to himself. He glanced up at the moon, silently thanking the night for giving him a full moon with beautiful moonlight shining over their table. The mood is set.

Reed heard footsteps entering their home and he immediately moved to get to Sue. He was so excited to tell her. Like a little boy who made a big castle out of blocks and couldn't wait to show the teacher what he did. His excitement quickly vanished when he didn't find Sue walking in.

No.

It was Johnny. The hair, the clothes, that jacket, all of it was Johnny. It was him. Johnny's alive and he found his way back. Reed dropped the flower he had been holding and felt the color leave his face. His pale body stood there, frozen. There was no way this wasn't Johnny. No way what so ever. He had the same clothes, the same hair cut, the same look. It had to be Johnny.

The younger man turned around and caught Reed looking at him. A cocky grin flew to the young man's lips. That sealed the deal. Johnny's cocky grin. It's him. It's Johnny.

"Johnny?"


	6. You Ruined Everything

"What? No. It's Matt," Matt frowned at Reed's accusation.

The room was suddenly weighed down by an awkward, strong tension between the two occupants. Reed's heart, which had been pounding so fast he nearly passed out, came to a screeching halt. Sure, he knew that Johnny was dead. It's a fact and he loves facts. A strong sense of disappointment ran through his nerves before he realized something. "What are you wearing?" he closed the space between himself and Matt, and started to observe his clothes more closely. "This is Johnny's shirt."

Matt examined the shirt he was wearing for a moment, before his eyes looked back up at Reed. "Yeah I know. Sue let me wear it."

Reed's eyes snapped up to look at Matt. "Excuse me?" he asked, his brilliant mind stopping in it's tracks. "Sue? My Sue? Sue Richards previously known as Sue Storms? About this high, blonde, prettiest woman you've ever laid eyes on... that Sue?"

Matt blinked. "Yeah, that Sue," he said. Matt had a bad feeling. The kind of feeling kids get when they get caught doing something wrong. The only problem is, he didn't do anything wrong, did he? He searched his brain for an answer but came up empty. "Is there a problem?" Matt asked, hoping Reed would release him from the awkward situation.

"Yeah, a big one," Reed said, more of a mumble than anything. Matt watched as the older man turned around with a soft sigh and rubbed his temples. Reed mumbled something Matt couldn't quite understand as he left. Matt blinked, staring at where Reed once stood. He cleared his throat and silently took off towards his room.

-----

"Reed, this is absolutely amazing," Sue smiled, placing her fork down on her plate as she picked up her wine glass. She took a small sip of the wine, eyes staring across the table. Reed sat across from her, his food mostly untouched, wine gone, looking stressed. Another science project, she assumed. She placed the wine glass back on the table and fold her hands on her lap. "Okay spill," she said.

Reed's eyes finally met hers. She looks beautiful. Stunning, more like it, in her light blue dress that fit her body perfectly. She's beautiful and he wanted nothing more than to enjoy this night. Sue, in her beautiful elegance, and him. Just them. He wanted it so bad. Only one problem, his mind could not for the life of him focus. All he could think about was Matt, which was a little odd. More than a little odd, actually.

"I'm fine," Reed put up a fake smile and picked up his fork, eating one of the vegetables on his plate. Sue's eyes were narrowing more by the second and he knew she wasn't going to let this go. Reed sighed and let the fork hit the plate with a loud clank. "Yeah, something is bugging me. I don't understand what's going with you Sue."

"Me? Nothing is going on with me-"

"Matt. Matt is what's wrong Sue. For the love of science, he said you let him wear Johnny's clothes!"

Sue frowned and shook her head. Her eyes went down to her plate and she started pushing the food around with her fork. "I don't think it's right to waste clothes, Reed," her voice was clearly defensive. "Besides, _you're _the one who keeps talking about budgeting our money."

"Yes, _our_ money!"

"Oh that is just horrible!" Sue dropped her fork again, glaring forward at Reed. "You know he can't afford his own clothes! You are the last person I should be having this conversation with. If I can remember correctly, you weren't that far from losing the clothes off your back once upon a time."

Reed sat back in his seat, hurt by her words. His past wasn't something he liked to talk about. Sue knows this. "Okay," Reed stood up from his seat. He picked up his plate and started to walk towards the door connecting the balcony to the kitchen.

"Reed!" Sue turned in her seat. Reed stopped, but didn't turn around. She frowned, staring at his back. "I didn't mean to do that. I just.... I just.... you don't understand. You don't understand."

"No," Reed said softly. "I understand perfectly. _You _don't understand," he said, hesitating a moment, before he went inside. He dumped his left over food in the trash and put the plate in the sink. He loosened his tie as he made his way towards lab. On his way he heard music blaring, and he turned to look in. Matt, still in Johnny's clothes, laying across the spare bed and reading a magazine, looked up at Reed. Reed stared at him for what felt like forever, before he finally said what he's been trying to say all along. "You're ruining everything," he said, voice laced withhurt. He blinked at him before continuing to his lab. He can't deal with this right now.

Sue, still outside on the balcony, shivered as a cold wind swept across the table, blowing out the candle light. Sue slouched in her seat, defeated. She rubbed her eyes with a loud, frustrated sigh. She stood up afterwards and made her way into the kitchen, plate in hand. She dumped the extra food into the trash and slid the plate into the sink. She leaned against the counter for a moment, thinking.

"Everything okay?" Matt said, standing by the kitchen entrance.

Sue grinned. "Yeah Matty, everything is fine," she walked over to him, heels clicking on the floor. She placed a kiss on his cheek and pulled back with a new grin. "Everything is okay," she assured him. A moment of silence passed between them. "You should get some sleep," she said. "Good night, Matty," she pat his back as she walked past him, heading to her bedroom. She stopped in the hallway, deciding instead to go see Reed. The closer she got to Reed's lab, the louder voices became. She frowned in confusion, stopping in the entrance of the lab.

Reed sat at his workspace, watching on the projector a video. Their wedding video. Reed reached out his hand, smiling when Sue took it. He pulled her close and they started their first dance as husband and wife. Reed frowned as he watched. Times were so much simpler back then. Sue grinned, taking a step forward, when something stopped her. Johnny came into view, making a crack about instead of the electric slide, Ben could do the rock slide. Sue stopped, her smile falling. Johnny's laugh filled the lab, along with Ben's gruff voice, threatening to pummel him. Sue swallowed and turned away. Reed hadn't even noticed she was there, until he heard the heels clicking out of his lab. He turned just in time to catch her back as she rounded the corner, surely heading to their bedroom. Reed sighed, turning the video off. He sat there for a moment, looking at a picture he had on his workspace. A newspaper clipping. Doom.

"You ruined everything."


	7. Seven Months

**A/N::: Haven't updated in awhile, but I was bored. Enjoy!**

Sue is a strong woman or at the very least that's what she tells herself. Sure, she's a "super hero" of sorts and yeah she kicks ass on a daily basis, but there was one thing that always humbled her and always reminded her just how human and fragile she really is: grief.

Grief is a funny thing. No one person experiences grief the same as another. Sure, there's the crying and heart break that everyone generally goes through, but grief affects each person differently. When Johnny died, Sue had been in denial for almost two months. She would tell Reed and Ben that Johnny was staying the night at a girl's place or that he was on vacation or that he moved. Anything that would explain why he wasn't around that didn't involve his death because to Sue Richards it was impossible for her brother to die.

It was nearly two month, a month and 27 days to be exact, when denial ran off and grief smacked her. It wasn't a gradual thing, no, it was sudden. She had been cleaning the dishes and found an old mug of Johnny's that he got at some BMX convention a few years ago. She held it in her hands, shaking, like if she dropped it then she could no longer deny that he's gone. She clutched the mug for dear life, sliding down the sink to the floor. She cried for what was probably only an hour or two but felt like days. That heavy burden on her heart exploded. Her brother is dead.

Life went on and so did Sue. Although she felt like she wasn't alive the fact remained that she was and is very much alive. So she went through her days trying to keep herself distracted from her grief. Then a year came and went but in its wake left Matt. Good ole Matt. Young, athletic, he resembled Johnny in not only hobbies but in looks as well. Sue saw an opportunity when she looked at Matt. She saw an opportunity to get her brother back.

Flawed. Outrageous. Ridiculous. Crazy. Sure, the words entered her mind more than once but she didn't really care. No one knows what she has to go through or how she feels. She can justify it in her mind so therefore it's alright.

Reed caught on rather early. He is a genius after all. Sue could only hope he knows her well enough to catch on. He kept a close eye on them. He watched as Matt dressed as Johnny, drove his cars, spent quality time with Sue, and even helped Sue put pictures of the two of them in a frame and on the wall. It was horrifying to watch your wife fall into such despair that you can't even get through to her. Every night he woke up as the bed dipped and Sue slid in after a night of watching movies with Matt. Every morning he watched Matt drink out of Johnny's mug. Every day he watched Matt become Johnny. Reed is a genius, yes, he can invent things and he knows Science better than any person known to date. Reed, however, is not a therapist. As he watches Sue fall deeper into her own denial, he doesn't know what kind of invention will help her. If he can even help her. She may be too far gone. It's thoughts like these that have separated Reed and Sue. Reed is so scared of losing Sue that he buries himself in his projects. Sue, so overwhelmed with the idea of having Johnny back, moves away from people like Reed and Ben who can talk her straight.

The house is no longer a home. Ben? Well Ben doesn't even come around anymore. He lives with Alicia and if it were up to him he would never visit his old home. Every time he looks at Sue it breaks his heart and every time he looks at Matt it makes him mad. How could Matt take advantage of Sue's vulnerability? How could Sue try and replace Johnny? He didn't get it. He grieved over Johnny too, but this? No, this was taking it too far. He doesn't understand it and he doesn't like it, so he avoids the house as long as he can.

Matt, well, he loves it. Nice and new clothes, hot cars to drive, someone who loves and cares about him, how could he refuse that. He knew, to a degree, what was going on with Sue. When it had first started he had told himself that he would break it off. He would move out and he would let her live her life. Then he remembered a little bit about what it was like to be him. He remembered what it was like to be unloved and alone. He may be selfish, but he needs some love every now and then and hey, if Sue was going to give it then Matt was going to take it. That humble, meek guy everyone first met isn't so humble and meek anymore. Yeah, he may be powerless, but that doesn't mean he can't be part of the family. As much as Ben runs from it and Reed ignores it, he's their brother now.

Seven months. Seven months of Reed and Sue pushing each other away. Seven months of Matt turning into Johnny. Seven months of Ben avoiding the house. Seven months of Sue trying to cope. Seven months have come and pass and Reed has finally had enough.

Maybe it was the way Matt seemed to be taking over or the way he had no respect for Johnny's memory, but at some point on a stormy Thursday afternoon, Reed had enough. He stormed into Ben and Alicia's place fuming with accusations and threats and calling Matt every name in the book. Ben stood up, something Reed hasn't seen in awhile caught in Ben's eyes. "So, let's have an intervention! Let's tell Susie what's really going on! Let's snap her out of it!" Ben raved on, clearly excited at getting things back to normal, or as normal as they could be without Johnny.

Alicia tsk'd, staring forward towards Ben. "Boys, remember that Sue has been through a really hard time. You need to be gentle with her. She's not some bad guy you need to straighten out."

Ben's raised fist lowered to his side. He cleared his husky throat. "O-Of course, Alicia. We know that. We just, uh, we just need to get Susie back. That's all that matters. We just need our Susie back."

Reed's eyes lift to meet Ben's. "I need to be strong for her. I need to stop hiding in my lab and hiding from our problems. From now on I'm going to be a man, and a husband, and I'm going to make her understand she can lean on me. She doesn't need Matt when she has me," he said, nodding once to confirm what he had just said. Yeah, sounds good to him. "I'm going to start right now. I'm going to go in there and sit her down and I'm going to say 'Sue, honey, this needs to end. I love you but this has to stop'. Then I will hug her and show her she has a man willing to be there for her. I'm going to do that right now!" he marched over to the door, opened it, and nodded at Alicia and Ben, then left. Ben blinked and the door opened again. Strong, manly Reed was now back to his usual self, peeking his head in to look at Ben.

"You are coming right?" he swallowed, eyes a little shifty.

Ben let out a rough laugh. "Yeah, Reed. I'm coming."


End file.
